Animation Academy
by Kittens In The Closet
Summary: The children of animated characters attend a boarding school together for a year, which will be full of surprises. Penny wants a new beginning, Harley doesn't want to get left behind again, Sam wants to find a family, and Roderick wants to get the girl... who pretty much wants him dead.
1. New Girls & Duck Pranks

Animation Academy

As the bus stopped with a jerk, Penny Rabbit couldn't help but sigh. Being the new girl was something she hated and could never get used to. New uniform… new friends… new everything. She had always found making friends hard. Her only friends were her parents and her 'uncle' Eddie. Other than that, she had no one. She hoped it would change this year, but she had little hope. Her last school had been awful. She could remember the last day, when the 'tomato soup' incident took place. She'd never go back there again.

She took her small purple suitcase, brushed her dark red hair out of her face and walked into the large, intimidating stone building. The corridors seemed like they would go on forever. It seemed like half an hour had gone by when she had finally gotten her timetable and room number. She felt like she was shrinking to a size smaller than her father inside the building. As she walked up the stairs to her room, another surprise waited for her. _Oh God, not her! _She thought in her head as she shut the door. The platinum blonde turned around, and looked as shocked as she was.

Penny had first met this girl, Harley when she had been five, and even then she had hated her. Her mother had feuded with Harley's for years, and when a friend had suggested that if their kids became friends might the feud change… she tried it and it had failed. The two never met again until they were both ten, when Penny had been shipped off to camp, where they had been roommates. Again, they hadn't gotten along and Harley had had great joy in beating the crap out of her when no one had been around. Their final meeting had been three years ago, when they were fourteen. It had been at her first high school, where Harley had managed to steal her first, and last boyfriend to date and break her right arm and leg within three terms. She hoped she'd never meet her again.

She thought Harley could possibly be jealous of what she had… which sounded stuck up but it was true. Harley didn't have much. She lived with her mother, who she had a very bad relationship with, she was unwanted and hated back at home, and she was forced to sleep on a small sleeping bag in the ex-pantry. Harley hadn't told her any of this… she had heard this all during complicated eavesdropping sessions. Harley never told anyone anything.

"Penny?!" What are you doing here?" Harley shouted at her as Penny threw her purple suitcase on her small, not that springy-looking bed.  
"This is my new school. I wondered how you got here… you're a bit…. Er…" Penny answered back, stuck on the last part. Harley had the ability to tie her tongue in knots… and that didn't help at all. She was awkward enough already, in her opinion.  
"What, Rabbit? You're friendship skills haven't improved since I last saw you, that's for sure," Harley told her with a smirk. "You are a freak."  
"Thanks…" Penny replied trying to ignore her. She had let Harley get her down in the past and she wasn't letting it happen this year.

Penny knew deep down that she would always be a freak. She had some of the oddest parents ever, an awkward comedic cartoon rabbit and a gorgeous mother… together, Penny ended up an awkward non-rabbit with most of her mother's looks. She wished she could at least of gotten some of her father's sense of humour… maybe she could've made friends with laughter.

Harley opened her mouth to say something else, just as the bell for the welcome back assembly went. She had never loved a bell more in her life.

xxxx

After the painfully long assembly, it was time for lunch. Penny had always hated lunch at school. There had been absolutely nowhere to sit. The popular were was an absolute no. The close-knit bunch of friends was another no, and so were all the other little groups that formed. As weird as it sounded, she used to sneak into an old unused storeroom, hope no one came in and eat her homemade sandwiches as she thought about why she was like this. There were no homemade sandwiches here.. so she was confined to the huge dining hall, which was painted an eyesore shade of yellow and smelt of burnt toast.

She luckily found a small, empty table in the corner of the room. She sat down by herself, mindlessly stirring her soup and hardly eating anything. No one sat next to her, which was actually a secret relief.

Meanwhile at another table, Penny had caught someone's eye. His name was Rider Fitzherbert, who found her quite attractive. He had always liked quiet ones. If his sister Sonne had dumped her plate of piping hot chicken and sweet corn soup on his head, he wouldn't have noticed.

"Rider, you've been looking at that girl with goo-goo eyes for ten minutes! Invite her to sit with us!" his other sister, Nina (along with him and Sonne they were triplets) said to him enthusiastically.  
"Don't encourage him!" Sonne replied, rolling her green eyes. She sighed as Rider stood up, told them to save his seat and went talk to her. As he reached her table, Penny almost jumped out of her skin. Rider, realising he had startled her, wondered what to say.

"Uh… hi. Want to sit with me and my sisters?" he asked, flashing a smile… not his most attractive one like he had meant it to be.  
"Um… uh… y-yeah…" Penny stammered, happy she had finally got the words out. She followed him to his table. She wondered why he had noticed her. Harley was sitting on her own, and was more likely to catch his eye. "I'm Penny.."  
"Nice to meet you Penny. I don't think I've met a Penny before… you're a bright as a newly shined one, I must say…" he said back, flirting at the end. _Bright as a newly shined one?! Really?! _He thought angrily in his head. His sisters laughed at the comment.  
"Nice to meet you, Penny," Sonne and Nina replied at the same time.  
"They're Sonne and Nina," Rider began. "Along with me, we're triplets."  
"T-triplets? I've never met triplets before…" Penny told the three with a smile. They all seemed quite nice.

Turning around for a second, she noticed Harley was still on her own. When they had met before, she had never had any friends, which baffled her. Harley had all the qualities for a stereotypical popular girl. She could be demanding, she was a maneater, and had the ability to take charge just with a smirk. But, she never pursued anything. She sat alone all the time, picking at her food and looking slightly depressed. Depressed enough for the girls to edge away from her, and enough for the boys to pity her and sit down with her.

Harley would always be something that would make her head ache.

xxxx

The day seemed to go by pretty quickly. After lunch, Penny was carted off by Sonne and Nina for a tour of the school, Harley went off hiding to smoke, giving any who passed a death stare which basically read: _tell and you're in a body bag, _and Rider went off for a jog with his friend Roderick.

Roderick was one of his closet friends, if he didn't include his family, many godfathers and long-time friend Rita, who was a twin to his 'arch nemesis' Gaston Jr. He always enjoyed embarrassing him, whether it was by pushing him into the mud in front of the cheerleaders, stealing his date to a dance, or the 'Ducky Prank.'

The 'Ducky Prank' was Rider's worst memory of last year, or maybe all time. The school had just gotten a pool installed for the new swim team, that had been formed by the generous donor who was now the coach, Ms. Octa, and he and Gaston Jr were sharing a room, which annoyed Rider a lot. The guy was the size of a barge almost, and took up both beds in the room, leaving him on the ground, in an uncomfortable sleeping bag. Gaston Jr had never been smart in the classroom, but when it came to personalities he was absolutely brilliant.

He knew that Rider liked to play the 'I'm a sexy tough guy' routine… which ended at night time, during which he wrote a letter to his mother every night, secretly kept a bunny and wore duck pyjamas. He had tried his best to hide these from Gaston, hiding the rabbit in strange places, trying to write letters in the dark, and raising the sleeping bag above his head until the muscle man was fast asleep.

Still, he caught on.

One night, Rider happened to snag the hottest girl in school, (who had now left, and now didn't hold a candle to Penny in his opinion) out for a date… right in front of him. He wanted revenge. Tired from day of football, Rider was out even before Gaston Jr could shoot down a deer.

Coincidentally, the next day was the school's first swimming carnival, and breakfast would be served there… so everyone would see his humiliation. Gaston Jr dragged him downstairs, put him into a duck floaty (and suit) he had bought with him (for this exact prank… that could've been for any poor soul that crossed him,) and sent him floating into the night. When he was back, he sent a text to the whole school to bring their cameras to the carnival. He woke up in a duck suit, on a duck floaty with the whole school screaming 'QUACK QUACK' at him as loud as they could as they took photos. That girl proceeded to break up with him, and torture him with rubber ducks until she left.

The teachers believed this was all planned for the carnival, no matter how much he protested.

xxxx

At around three o' clock in the afternoon, another car pulled up at the school. A platinum blonde-haired Junior, with an eyebrow piercing, a lip piercing, a crystal-blue guitar case, and a blue suitcase came out. His name was Sam Icer, the newest addition to the Academy. He had already been kicked out of three schools, and this was his last hope. He was a lost cause, kind of like Harley in a few ways. He was known for all the wrong reasons. It could come down to his crazy past, his mother being tossed off the throne and banished because of a crime surrounding his birth, or that he just didn't care. It was probably the latter.

The first person he came into contact with after the principal and other members of the faculty was Harley. Not exactly the person you'd want to hang out with if your mother wanted you to have a new beginning. He tossed his bags aside, asked for a smoke and tried to make conversation.

"Uh… Hey…" he said awkwardly.  
"Hey." she responded coldly, facing away.  
"Uh… you new here?" he asked.  
"Yeah." she answered. She wasn't used to people voluntarily coming to sit with her. They normally just left her alone… or she'd drive them off angrily. She was wondering why she wasn't doing the latter. Was it because she thought him intriguing, or that she was what she would consider a 'male-appreciator?' Only time would tell.  
"Where did you come from?" he asked, still trying to converse.  
"Nowhere," she said back. "At least, it's nowhere in my eyes. What about you?" she continued, finally facing him.  
"I live in the mountains… it's quite nice being secluded…" he replied.  
"I wish I lived somewhere like that…. All quiet. But then again, I can't expect it. I live next door to a bar." She said, completely facing him this time. "I'm Harley… by the way.."  
"Sam." He smiled, taking another cigarette. "What do you do for fun?"  
"Run errands, pretend to be interested in things I'm not and engage in questionable activities after dark," Harley responded with a smirk.  
"I normally just play my guitar. I don't really do much… living in the mountains and all. My mom doesn't really talk to me much.. she always has stuff on her mind." Sam answered. _Shut up, Sam! Why are you telling a total stranger this?! _He thought furiously to himself.  
"I… um, er… well, my mother doesn't have much time for me either. She hates me." Harley replied. "And I hate her." She continued, a look of anger on her seemingly delicate face. Like Sam, she wondered why she was telling him this. In a way, he seemed to understand her.  
"I'm sure that isn't true.. " he said to her, smiling as he puffed.  
"Yes. She says that I'm just a bad memory. I honestly don't care.." she said, chuckling. "I'm just amazed I made it to seventeen!"

As Sam was about to reply, the bell rang. She smiled, saying goodbye to Sam, shaking his hand, and going off on her way.

xxxx

The afternoon basically faded away, and dinner came quickly. Everything was going normally until Roderick decided to do what was the equivalent of bleeding in a shark-ridden tank – deciding to hit on Verity DeVil, his long time crush (which no one could understand, especially Rider.) The girl had entranced him since he had first accidentally covered her in spaghetti and meatballs (which no one could understand, considering she screamed at him to get lost, she would sue him and skin him alive in his sleep.)

Everyone thought Verity as the scariest girl in the school, even passing Athena, who once tied a boy to the flag pole by his ear because he said her hair was too bright for his liking. Verity even looked intimidating. Her crazy black and white hair, excessive amounts of eyeliner, blood-red lips, permanent scowl and large fur coats made everyone run away. The other thing that made her terrifying were her lash-outs, or as Rider liked to call them, The Fur-Freak's Bitchfits. Roderick still happened to like her though, even if she despised him.

"Hey, you look gorgeous today V." Roderick winked.  
"Drop dead." Verity grumbled.  
"Then I couldn't see you everyday.." he winked.  
"I mean it." Verity said back, voice raised. Roderick noticed Rider making the 'head cut off' symbol.  
"But y-" Roderick said flirtingly, but was cut off by Verity.  
"DO I LOOK LIKE I AM LYING?! YOU ARE A LOSER, A CLUMSY IDIOT AND MOST OF ALL I HATE MEN, ESPECIALLY DIMWITS LIKE YOU! PISS OFF! YOU DON'T HAVE A CHANCE IN HELL!" Verity screeched, grabbing her bowl of salad and throwing it over his head. Harley burst out laughing, setting off Gaston and most of the dining hall.  
"You so want me." Roderick smirked. Verity screamed at him again, grabbing her water and pouring it over his head.  
"You should've quit while you were ahead, dude!" Rider shouted at him. At that moment, a girl with black hair and blue eyes passed by, grabbing a cucumber off his shirt.  
"You taste delicious." She smiled, walking off. Rider couldn't help but laugh as she left. Roderick looked at him furiously as he walked closer to his table."  
"Verity Devil to the principal's office," rang over the speakers as Roderick returned to his table.

xxxx

Penny opened the door to her and Harley's room, yawning as she shut it. The room was silent, aside from the occasional 'flapping' of a page turning from Harley. _Harley? Reading? When? _Penny thought in her head.

"What are you reading?" Penny asked, taking her pyjamas from her drawer and heading towards the bathroom.  
"Oh, nothing. Just something about this pathetic girl getting dumped before a dance. She's really, really pathetic…" Harley responded.  
"Uh.. okay then." Penny answered, shutting herself in the bathroom.  
"And then, diary, I couldn't believe he dumped me?! I just got my braces off! I put in contact lenses! I bought my dress! And he's taking her! I just want to lock myself in my room and never come out. Or maybe get some ice cream, it makes everything better-"  
"HEY! THAT'S MY DIARY!" Penny screeched through the door.  
"Huh? Oh, I can continue?' she mocked. "It only made everything worse. I devoured a tub of cookies and cream ice-cream, and then put on some Backstreet Boys. Their cuteness isn't even working. I think I'll go b-"  
"GIVE IT BACK!" Penny said, trying to be powerful, but only ended up sounding like a whiny five-year old.  
"Hmm… let me think. No." Harley said back, Penny snatching it out of her hands.

She threw the coverers over herself, hiding the diary under her pillow, trying to finally settle down and go to sleep.


	2. The Dreaded GL and the Lucky Nerd

Chapter 2: The Dreaded GL And The Lucky Nerd

The new day brought nervousness, classes and a chilly breeze. Penny stared at herself in the mirror, straightening her scarlet tie and smoothing out her red and yellow checked skirt. She had never thought herself that pretty, with hair that could go from beautifully curled to a crazy mess in seconds, painfully wide green eyes which she thought looked horrible on her, and the fact she was quite chubby, no matter how she tried to change it. A few people had told her she was pretty, but whenever they did, she just flushed scarlet, put her head down and murmured a 'really?' They probably were just pitying her.

Why did Harley have to be the pretty one? When she had stolen her first ever, and still only boyfriend, it hadn't only been because of how she could brilliantly seduce a guy, but also because she was gorgeous. She had straight blonde locks that looked perfect no matter what she did with them, crystal blue eyes that were chilling, but were full of mystery, and she was not even close to being anything close to chubby. In other words, she was like a real-life photoshopped model. Just like she had been reading her thoughts, Harley walked past the mirror, making Penny hold back a sigh. Even in an ugly school uniform she looked great. Harley smirked at her on the way out.

"The loose tile in the bathroom wasn't the best place to hide your diary, honey." she chuckled, shutting the door. Penny would've confronted her, but after last night's failed attempt she decided to just leave it. She didn't want to embarrass herself again. Tying up her shoes, she opened the door and left, hoping Rider had saved her a spot in the dining hall… if he wanted to be friends with her. At the moment it seemed like it, and Penny often kept her hopes up too much. She tried to shake those thoughts out of her mind as she walked down the large staircase of the academy, faint scent of burned pancakes filling her nose. She watched chaos unfold as she got her full glimpse of the academy's second floor. Coach LeGume was flirting with swim team and guidance counsellor Ms Octa, cheerleading captain Scarlett Price was making out with her boyfriend James Maldonia, and heaps of students were tripping or stepping over a large blonde braid. She knew who it belonged to, Rider's sister Sonne. _Why doesn't she just cut her hair? _Penny thought as she walked into the dining room, cautiously stepping over the braid. Sonne waved to her with a grin as Penny took a plate and a semi-burnt pancake, coming over and sitting next to an already finished Nina, with her nose stuck in her book, glasses teetering alarmingly on the end of her nose. Rider let out a groan and slammed his head down on the table, pushing away his plate. Penny raised an eyebrow, not wanting to ask.

"Um… good morning.." she blushed. Roderick looked over at her with a small grin, before turning it into a sigh as he went back to Rider, seizing his shoulders so he'd stop the banging. The dreaded GL had gotten to his head again. It standard for Gaston LeGume Sr, Head Teacher of Physical Education. His sisters and Roderick had gotten Mr H. Godde, which he was insanely jealous about. Only Penny shared his pain, but she didn't know anything about him.

"Come on, Rider! Don't let the dreaded GL get to your head." Roderick said to Rider with a sigh. Mr LeGume was a sexist man who was an absolute imbecile in almost everyone's opinion. He blatantly favourite his son, and was absolutely brutal. Rider normally made it through when the game wasn't dodge ball, but he was taking it hard this time for some reason… Roderick guessed it was having to deal with the gym teacher's brutal, annoying class for three years in a row. Mr Godde was way more easy going, made a few jokes every now and then, and was actually _nice _to his students. No one understood why Mr LeGume hadn't been fired yet, but no one had the nerve to ask or complain to the principal.

"Three… whole… years." Rider said, eyes wide open. It actually scared Penny for a few split seconds, but after Sonne burst out laughing, she guessed he was just being a drama queen. If GL was this bad, at least she'd have a friend with her.

"Drama-queen!" Sonne scoffed as Roderick let go of Rider. His eyes returned to his normal state and he didn't slam his head again. He just looked at her in envy. "Luck might change?" Sonne chuckled nervously. Rider still didn't look unamused, until his face changed at the bell, turning into a laugh as Nina scrambled from her seat, throwing in her purple-sun-patterned bookmark and running from the room, determined to get to class incredibly early.

"Nerd!" Rider called out jokingly, getting up himself and placing his bag on his back. "Did my sisters show you where Ms Faery's classroom is?" he asked, starting to leave the dining hall. Penny nodded.

"Yeah, but can I walk with you? I mean… if you don't mind it's fine because I don't want to intru-" Penny rambled, going scarlet as Rider cut her off.

"No, no, it's fine. You can hang with us all term if you like. Have to look after the newbies.. especially kinda cute ones." he winked. Roderick punched his arm playfully.

"What?!" Penny blushed at his comment, wondering if he was just saying it to make her not as nervous. She hoped this school would be the start of a new beginning, even with Harley. She looked over to her right to find her with a platinum blonde guy. She sighed, hoping this poor soul could back out while he could… if he could. She had a way of basically 'hypnotising' guys, making them do anything for her. Then, she'd throw them in the gutter, heart broken. She'd smirk at them every once and awhile, then repeat the process. That was something she wasn't that envious about. If she ever got the slightest chance of getting another boyfriend, she wouldn't even think of going after another guy. She'd be lucky she could even get one. She followed Rider and Roderick in the direction to Ms. Faery's class, hoping for the best.

xxxx

Nina happily hummed as she took a seat in her AP English class, wrapping her scarlet cardigan around her tight. The open window was bringing in a slightly unpleasant but still quite nice draft. She was the only one here. English had always been her favourite subject, and her best, unlike her siblings, who were very gifted in art, which they had gotten from her mother. She had always felt like an oddball in the family. She wasn't confident like her parents, quite quiet to everyone who wasn't family or she didn't know that very well, and she wasn't that much of a pretty girl, or interesting. The kids in Corona always loved to use Sonne's hair as a skipping rope, braid her hair with flowers or dance with her, and Rider always read to the children and gave them piggybacks up the hills, making them beam. They acted more like normal people… but Nina just couldn't. She acted like a royal at all times, for some reason. Just this morning she freaked because there was only _one _knife and fork instead of the usual many for all the courses at a royal dinner. It wasn't a matter of being stuck up, just how she fitted in, but sadly she'd never get to become Queen. As Rider the first-born (by three minutes, which he never let them forget) and the only son, he'd be the King of Corona one day. She wasn't bitter, just a bit upset. Sometimes she just felt like a third wheel.

She was distracted by her thoughts by being covered in water. She cried out at the coldness and looked up to see if it was one of Gaston's cronies or him himself sneaking in before their class to upset her. The boy that dropped the water immediately sprung into action, apologising several times, stuttering over his words and trying to dry her off with his blazer. He had short brown hair with a tint of orange, silver braces, thick framed brown glasses and a just as thick French accent. In Nina's opinion, he was actually quite nice-looking.

"Again, I am really, really sorry! I thought I had the lid on tight but I-I was o-opening up my book and I-I dropped my book… Sorry!" he blurted out. Nina giggled softly.

"It's fine," she nodded, gently pushing his blazer away. "I don't want to dampen your blazer any more than I have…" she blushed as he put his blazer back on. He took a seat next to her, apologising once more. She decided to change the subject as she caught sight of his novel. 'Oooh! Is that the new fantasy novel that came out last month? I've been dying to read it!"

"It's great, I'm almost done, and I bought it last week." the boy nodded. "I heard there's going to be a sequel."

"Really? I'll have to go and buy it before it turns into a trilogy!" she giggled. "I'm reading a pretty good book at the moment myself." she continued.

"M-maybe I can make it up to you by lending you m-my b-book." the boy stuttered. "M-my name is M-Maurice by the way…" Nina beamed.

"That would be great! I'm Nina." Nina smiled back, just as a few more students and the teacher arrived. "Talk to you later?"

"O-okay…" Maurice blushed. No one had really payed much attention to him, just his older, Senior brother Jacques. He was the confident guy of the family, always surrounded by friends, his adoring girlfriend Katherine Charming and always got perfect grades. He just slunk into the background, waving and smiling to the few that payed attention, then seeking refuge in a book. He wondered if Nina could help him out of his shell..


	3. Conceal, Don't Feel

Chapter 3 – Conceal, Don't Feel

Rider dragged himself into the boy's change room in the gym, relieved to find that he was the only one there. Most of the students in the previous years arrived late, not caring for the class, much like him. Gaston normally arrived last, but the coach never reprimanded him for it simply because he was his son, while if Rider was only the slightest bit late, he'd get detention for a week for tardiness. Gaston often looked on with a smug smile, making Rider want to punch him in the face even more than he usually did. He whipped on his yellow P.E shirt on quick, hearing the door of the change room creak, signalling that someone was entering. The footsteps weren't booming, so he figured it was luckily not Gaston. Putting on his gym shorts, he looked around at the guy who entered, hoping it was Roderick, who had hopefully gotten a schedule change for a split second, but instead being greeted with the sight of a pale platinum-blonde guy who he had never seen before. He normally stuck with his group, but he knew the name of almost everyone in his year. Knowing an empty gym awaited him outside, he decided to break the ice.

"Um… hi. Are you new?" Rider said coolly, slumping down onto a bench. The boy turned around as he put on his scarlet gym shorts, as if he expected not to be talked to. He hesitated for awhile, before finally responding.

"Hi. Yeah." he answered back, throwing his bag against the wall as he finished changing. Rider couldn't help but notice his blue gloves, and he debated on commenting on them, but judging by him shoving his hands behind his back the first change he got, it didn't seem like a good move.

"I'm Rider. Rider of Corona. Nice to meet'cha. " he replied with a brief smile, as the newbie hesitated once again.

"Sam of Aren-" he cut himself off, clearing his throat. "Sam of the North Mountain."

"Mountain's, huh? Is it cool up there? Don't mind the pun-" Rider was cut off by the door slamming loudly. He knew exactly who this was, and he only had this Sam of the North Mountain to 'save' him.

Gaston.

xxxx

Brigit Bjorgman left the Principal's Office quickly, thinking to herself as she wandered down the halls, hoping she wouldn't be late. It wouldn't be a good impression at all on her first day. _Okay, okay, I got to find my class. Man, that's a fancy painting! It must've cost- Brigit, focus! School pool, school pool…. Hey, that rhymes! BRIGIT, FOCUS. I think it's down here – it's been ages since I've swam… Wait, there's the teacher! Man, his biceps are huge! _were a flurry of thoughts as she entered her gym class, late. The teacher actually seemed kind, coming over to her quickly.

"S-sorry I'm late!" she said quickly. "I'm new and well… I kinda got lost." the teacher nodded.

"Well, the school is pretty big… and I got lost in my first weeks as well," he chuckled. "I'm Mr Godde, your gym teacher for the year." he head out a large hand. Brigit attempted to shake it, though her hand was tiny.

"I'm Brigit Bjorgman. I guess I should go get dressed…" she said awkwardly, stepping back.

"The change rooms got um… flooded after a plumbing mistake with Mr Phillips, so you'll have to use the ones in the gym upstairs. It's the first building to your left." he nodded, just as awkwardly. He turned around at a splashing noise. "Sonne Fitzherbert! No cannonballs! Laps!" he shouted, though he didn't seem menacing.

Brigit nodded, beginning to leave the room, only to bump into a platinum blonde guy as she came towards the gym. Her papers flew everywhere as she fell on top of him, going bright red. He didn't seem impressed, but she didn't blame him at all. Brigit had a reputation for being a klutz, as she was a constant ball of energy, normally leading into her spilling chocolate fondue all over her ball gowns, breaking a statue once as she rode her bike around the halls of her home, crashing into windows and toppling over armour. It was awfully embarrassing.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so, so sorry! I have a tendency to be a klutz and talk too much after I do something awkward, and you think I'd no better and…. I'm doing it right now." she sighed at the end. The boy grabbed her papers, hus heart skipping a few beats as he saw her schedule. Brigit… _Bjorgman? _As in related to Kristoff and Anna Bjorgman of Arendelle?

"It's… um… fine, Brigit." he nodded, handing over her pages, with great hesitation. "I'm Sam…" he looked up, and to Brigit's surprise, she saw a bleeding nose. She gasped, thinking she'd caused it.

"Oh god! No, no, no! I'm so sorry! I made you BLEED!" she said dramatically. Sam managed to laugh at her dramatic actions. She seemed kind of cute… in a _family _way.

"No, no! I was just heading to the nurses, for some… ice." he paused, thinking it ironic. He already had enough ice of his own… too much. Beneath his gloves and his faked 'skin condition,' Sam had a secret, in which he had inherited from his mother. He had a great power, the power to create ice and snow with his bare hands. He had always been told to conceal it, before he hurt anyone. Sam had never understood, until a few years ago, when he had completely messed it up at his old school. His bolt of ice _had to hit her heart_… it was the last time he'd date again. "They sure don't take it easy on the new guy… it's a jungle in there!" he managed a hearty laugh as he got up off the floor. "I guess I should go." he began to walk away.

"I hope that nose clears up! " Brigit grinned. "Bye Sam." she nodded, heading on her way.

She didn't notice Sam look back at her as she opened the door to the gym.

Sam knew he had one more chance. One more chance at having a family. He hadn't exactly been honest with Harley about his mother. His mother died last year after she was killed with poison, planted by his father, who resented the fading Snow Queen. Fearing it would start on him, Sam took his scholarship to Animation Academy, hoping he wouldn't mess up again, hoping to please his mother, wherever she was now. He didn't believe in Heaven. He tried… but all he could picture was his mother rotting under the snow, never to be cared about again.

All he had to do was not mess it up, and for Sam, that wouldn't be easy.

xxxx

Rita LeGume was not having a good first day.

She walked quickly through the dining hall, going off to find her usual seat with her friends Sonne, Nina, Roderick, and her absolute best friend Rider. They two had met when Rita was four, and had accidentally (on purpose) wandered off from her father and brother on a trip to Corona to trade furs, when she had accidentally tripped the very own Prince of Corona right down a hill… almost into a river. He'd just managed to stop just in time. After a lot of chatting (they were four after all), they became fast friends, and always managed to meet up until Rita had to go back to France.

Taking a glimpse at her table in the distance, she scowled. A newcomer had joined the group… and had taken her seat. For a reason, Rita had always been very possessive, especially when concerning Rider. She had a large crush on him, and didn't like to admit it, but it showed when he introduced a new girlfriend or got assigned to work with another girl on a project that wasn't his sister. She wanted to tell him, but she had always decided not to at the last minute. She walked over anyway, taking a seat next to Roderick, cutting off a chatting Sonne mid-sentence.

"Who's the new girl?" Rita asked. Penny looked up from her food, especially because her tone was cold. Rider, oblivious to her coldness as usual, smiled at her.

"This is Penny, we invited her to sit with us yesterday. Well, I did." he responded with a smirk. Rita, to stop herself from fuming, because Rider was obviously smitten, snatched the pepper and began to shake it… only she didn't know of the contents. "She's pretty cool, you'll love her." Rita shook harder.

"Um… hi…" Penny said quietly to the furiously-shaking Rita, raising an eyebrow at the pepper cloud on top of Rita's sandwich.

"Hey. I'm Rita. I don't think he told you much about me, did he?" she replied, trying not to sneer. This was obviously an act. She looked like a lost lamb, an act girls used to get with Rider often.

"Not really." Penny nodded. "It's nice to meet you." Rita noticed the pepper mound as the girl talked, refusing to look at her. She scowled, getting out of her seat quickly.

"I'm going to get a napkin." she mumbled, walking to the front of the dining room with her tray, grabbing about half the napkins in the container because she was so annoyed. She had only talked to Penny once, and she already hated her. She took the long way back, smirking as she thought of something. She went to sit back down, pretending to stumble, dumping the contents of her tray onto the redhead. "Oh my God! Whoops!"

"It's fine… um… just an accident… I do this all the time…" Penny mumbled, sneezing as she looked down at the pepper covering her blazer. "I better go and change…" she scurried out. Rita tried to hide her satisfied smirk, which was quite hard, as she took what had been Penny's seat.

"Poor girl… I'd hate to be surrounded in bad luck." Rita said, pretending to be upset. Rider, oblivious, nodded sympathetically.

xxxx


	4. Bonding' Part 1

Chapter 4 – 'Bonding' Part 1

Brigit opened the doors to the courtyard, smiling as the sunlight hit her face. By the end of gym, three girls had ended up 'adopting' her, and leaving her an invitation to sit with them whenever she wanted to. She looked out at the scene, gazing up at the tall red gates, the students chattering, and her three new friends sitting under a large tree, which as she walked closer, had a plaque on its trunk, which read: WALT TREE.

She sat down next to the first girl that had approached her, Scarlett Price, head-cheerleader and possibly the nicest girl, beside her mother, that she had ever met. Next to her was a girl with purple glasses, curly chestnut brown hair, with an expression that seemed like she was daydreaming as she glued a star onto a sheet of pink paper, and an orange-haired girl, scowling, who she was scowling at, was unknown to Brigit. It wasn't the girls, as she was facing the opposite direction.

"Just let it go, Olga! Katherine made her choice, Jacques… and we can't change that." Scarlett sighed, shaking her head as she looked up at the girl Olga was scowling at, Katherine. She was a strawberry blonde with kind eyes, sitting close to and laughing with a brunette guy, who Brigit figured was Jacques. Scarlett turned to Brigit, feeling her prescience, smiling at her. "Oh, hi, Brigit!"

"Hey." Brigit grinned, unwrapping the sandwich she had grabbed for lunch. "How have you been?"

"I have been sooooo exhausted! We need to pick some new girls for the cheerleading squad… and no one has put their name down to try out yet! That's why I'm making these posters. We need some new talent since the senior girls left last year. I miss Jane Rolfe so much! She was the only girl that could do five backflips in a row. How can we replace her?!" the chestnut-brown haired girl told Brigit, voice a squeak by the time she was at the end of her response. Brigit raised an eyebrow. These girls has saved her the humiliation of sitting alone on her first day… (she had spied the platinum-blonde guy she had bumped into in one of her classes, but he apparently had a girlfriend.. or a friend that happened to be a girl who looked like, for lack of a better word a bitch, that turned her away from sitting with him, so she had decided to sit in the corner when Scarlett approached her) she needed to pay them back, even though she was a klutz that would probably demolish a human pyramid in two seconds. She was never a graceful one.

"Uh… I could audition if you like?" Brigit said, hesitantly. The chestnut-haired girl immediately looked up from her poster, flinging her arms around her, leaving glue in her hair, as she screamed with excitement. The orange-haired girl shook her head.

"Lillian, don't scare her away… and I'm pretty sure you just got glue in her hair…" she told her, chuckling slightly. Lillian pulled away, blushing slightly.

"That's okay, L-Lillian… it washes out… I think…" Brigit responded between bites of sandwich, shrugging, placing her free hand on her head, trying to stop a sigh as she felt the stickiness. Three more classes until the audition….

xxxx

Lunch was over as quickly as it had come, a before he knew it, Rider was up at his next class, taught by a teacher that could either be his saving grace after gym, or make his head spin on the first day back. Mrs Mouse was quite nice, but her 'everyone can get along and become a huge happy family' attitude was sickening. Everyone agreed. The day him and Gaston would be baking chocolate chip cookies and working as a team would only exist in her delusional mind. It had only gotten worse in the last year. Now, on the first day back, all the classes she had would go through 'getting to know each other' exercises . Her had been partnered with Gaston… and blindfolded. He could still feel the sore nose and picture the black eye as he ran him into poles, and made him trip over stuff. Maybe he'd get someone better this year? He doubted it! If he was put with Gaston again this year, he'd scream. He tried not to make his annoyance crossed with nervousness obvious as his teacher entered the room, dressed in her signature polka dot dress, oversized bow in her hair. Though she was in her late thirties (he had found out while snooping for test results, not one of his proudest moments), she seemed to have not aged past twenty three.

"It's lovely to see so many familiar faces here in my class this year! I can't wait to meet all you new people too, so that's why I'm bringing something back from last year, The Bowl Of Trust." Mrs Mouse beamed, some students in the back already shaking their heads at the sickly sweet voice. At 'The Bowl Of Trust' groans were heard all around the room. "It wasn't that bad! You get extra credit for the first assignment this year if you complete the exercise properly!"

"Yeah!" Gaston yelled out. "It was awesome!" Rider shot him a scowl as several children looked puzzled. He actually _liked _that?!

"Glad to see someone enthusiastic! Now, for the pairs. Gaston and Scarlet. Pick a trust exercise for the two of you." Mrs Mouse grinned. Rider finally let himself breathe properly. Scarlet had a 'why me?' expression on her face as she quickly made her way up to the front, while Gaston looked quite disappointed. He was obviously looking forward to a free, non-punishable excuse to torture him.

"Let's see…" Scarlett muttered, sticking a hand into The Bowl Of Trust, taking a piece of blue paper and slowly unwrapping it. "Partner 1, the first called out cannot speak for a day, and has to rely on Partner 2 to speak for them." she said softly. Gaston groaned. Silent… for a day?! Rider started chuckling. Gaston looked at him sternly.

"It didn't say I couldn't use my fists, Fitzherbert." he said to him sternly as Mrs Mouse hurriedly nodded to the two to sit down.

"Next pair. Rider and Harley." she nodded. Harley… didn't seem familiar. She must've been new, like Penny.

At the sound of a chair, he turned around as he stood up, eyes locking with what seemed were cold, unforgiving blocks of ice, stern, and obviously focusing on him. He looked down at her lips, which was quite a mistake, because though they were in a scowl as she started to walk, were a perfect shade of pink and seemed _extremely _kissable…. and Gaston would probably score her in a heartbeat.

Flicking some platinum blonde strands of hair out of her face, she grabbed the first piece of paper she saw, looking as if she didn't have a single care, and had hundreds of things better to do than being stuck in this classroom, with an idiot that had probably crept her out with all of his staring, that was her partner for some strange trust thing that would most definitely be a waste of her time. Perfectly manicured nails unwrapped the small paper as Rider finally stood beside her. She passed the paper to Rider to read, rolling her eyes.

"Tied together for 24 hours. Work together to accomplish tasks." he read quickly. Her expression told all: _are you serious?!_

"Well, that'll begin at the end of the period… I'm sure you can show her the ropes of trust. You did okay with Gaston last year… though a few small hiccups." Mrs Mouse smiled. If only she knew… "Now, our next group! Penny and Sam." she announced as Harley elbowed past Rider, still in a slight daze, sitting back down in her seat. He swore she whispered 'good luck' to Sam as he stood up slowly, making his way with Penny to the dreaded bowl. He unwrapped the paper with his gloved hands slowly, leaving a strange, strange suspense.

"Twen-" he began, starting to cough, clearing his throat quickly. "Twenty one questions: you can ask the other whatever you want until the next lesson. Mark down the questions and answers." he passed the paper to Penny quickly, folding his arms. She nodded, returning to her seat. Pair after pair passed quicker and quicker, until the bell rang. He walked up to the front slowly, Harley starting to walk to the door.

"Uh… H-Harley?" he spoke softly and quickly. She walked over, cursing under her breath. As they left the classroom, now tied together, she shot him a death stare.

"Screw this up and I'll break your neck." she said through gritted teeth. Rider went pale. _Talk about friendly bonding…_

xxxx

"I was thinking we could start this slow, as I don't know much about you already… _not that I'm nosy or anything," _Penny told Sam as she walked towards their Geography class. He seemed really, really quiet, only communicating in nods and shakes of his head unless he absolutely had to speak. "How about family?"

"Uh… um… Well, I only really know my mother…. I guess you could say I know my father _too _well, I have a cousin and an aunt and uncle that I managed to track down… but I'm not a hundred percent sure if I should try and talk to them because of _reasons." _he responded. Penny thought of asking why, but she didn't want to appear nosy… maybe he had good 'reasons' why… though she couldn't understand why he'd want to hide from his own family. "W-what about you?"

"It's just my mom and my dad. They were only children, so no uncles or cousins. I call one of our really close friends an uncle, he's really family in my opinion because my parents and I have known him for so long,.. but it doesn't really count." she answered, arriving at the door. "Uh, I guess I'll see you at lunch... if you want. Where do you sit?"

"In the courtyard, near the back, with Harley, the blonde girl tied to Rider." he nodded, realising how strange the end sounded as he found a seat at the back.

"Uh…. great." she said with a weak smile. He must've been the guy she saw with her yesterday. It didn't sound like he liked her, but he seemed pretty good at being emotionless, so maybe he was the boy that was finally immune to her charms? The two didn't really seem like they were similar. They were very blonde…. and icy-eyed…. and had a personality…. conflicting personalities… but that's where it ended for Penny. He might've just fit in better with her.

That was when she eyed Harley practically dragging Rider coming through the door, shoving him into a desk and taking her own seat. At least she wouldn't get to him… this wasn't the best way to charm someone… unless it was new from 'the school of charming guys,' something she managed to joke about with her mother. She didn't want him to get his heart broken. He was too nice…

xxxx

As the dinner bell rang, students rushed down the tiled halls, down the red carpeted stairs, and into the lunch hall, eager to catch up on whatever gossip that had escaped their ears. Harley walked down quickly, dragging Rider who had tripped by the third step alongside with her. This was absolutely humiliating… he was such an idiot.

"Hurry up!" she muttered as he got up, trying not to get dragged again. He grabbed his usual, trying to drag her, though she ended up dragging him again when he tried to sit with his group. By the time she'd gotten to Sam, all that remained of his lunch was a patty covered in cheese and sauce from what had been a burger… at least it was better than nothing.

"Uh… hey… Sam, right?" he said awkwardly, mouth full of patty. Harley moved as close as she could before it would be non-friend zone to Sam, shaking her head.

"Yes… you're Rider, aren't you?" Rider nodded, stuffing the rest of the patty in his mouth.

"Look! One bite and swallow! Cool, right?" he grinned. Sam and Harley looked at him as if he said he was a pink unicorn from Rainbowland. These people were hard to impress.

"Idiot." Harley muttered.

"B-b-but I'm a hot idiot!" he winked.

"Are you serious? This carrot looks more appealing than you." Harley rolled her eyes, as Rider reached over and picked up the banana on her lap.

"You should've use this! Y'know… appealing!" he burst out laughing at his own, dorky joke. By this point, even Sam looked like he wanted to punch him in the face. Harley pushed him off the table, trying not to be dragged down with him. Rider was still laughing for some odd reason.

"I love the new look, though." Harley grinned.

"Really?! But I look the same!" he responded.

"With added mud." she grinned. Rider looked down at his blazer.

"No… no… oh no… my mom just got the servants to wash this!" he grimaced.

"Servants? Idiot prince… right?" she said to him with a smirk. Rider nodded. Sam shook his head looking down at his lunch. If only she knew…

xxxx

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please R/R, I love receiving constructive criticism!**


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